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Naperville
Thursday, March 28, 2024

Veterans in Touch – September musings

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Mark your calendars Naperville residents! September 18 is the 3rd annual JUDD A THON!

It is everyman’s race in Naperville for woman, too. The length of the race is 0.1K. That’s right, I said 0.1K. We have had 3 year olds and 95 year olds run this race. Citizens that use walkers and canes also compete. Sadly, I must report one of the Veterans using a walker beat me last year.

This is a fun event. All the proceeds go to the VFW National Home For Children. Costumes are encouraged. I have had my 3rd fitting for my costume this year. It will be a stunner! The time of the race is at 10:01AM. We encourage people to be there by 9AM to take part in all the pre-race festivities. Entry and sponsor forms are on the VFW website at www.vfw3873.org. I hope to see you all there.

Thank you, Naperville Township

A few months back I asked our Veterans if they were one of the lucky ones. Only one-third of Vietnam Veterans are still alive today. I consider myself to be one of the lucky ones. For that reason my wife, Jan, and I have decided to retire from duties at Naperville Township.

With many of my brothers falling by the wayside, we want to enjoy the time we have left. That doesn’t mean I will stop helping Veterans. I will still be the Service Officer for both the American Legion and the VFW. My mission will still be to identify, educate and motivate Veterans to apply for the benefits and services they so truly deserve from the VA and other federal, state and county agencies.

Jan and I would both like to thank Naperville Township for providing us a platform to help Veterans. The Township provided us with the resources to accomplish the goals we set and the successes we achieved. Some of those successes are:

• Over 400 Veterans were signed up for VA Healthcare.
• Over 200 Veterans were directed to Veteran Service Officers.
• Two Veteran Health Fairs as well as three job fairs in the area were organized.
• The Hines Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) comes to the Naperville VFW Post the first Tuesday of every month to sign up Veterans for VA Healthcare and answer questions

Many other programs and events were presented throughout the years, but I won’t bore you with details. This change is not the end; just a new beginning. You can always contact me to help Veterans and answer your questions.

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Mike Barbour
Mike Barbour
Mike Barbour is a Service Officer, American Legion Post 43, and regular contributor to PN. Also contact him at mbarbour@wowway.com.

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